Rancho Roblar de la Miseria facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Rancho Roblar de la Miseria
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Current picture of the former Rancho Roblar de la Miseria on Pepper Rd. Near Mecham Rd.
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Rancho Roblar de la Miseria was a large piece of land in what is now Sonoma County, California. It was about 16,887-acre (68.34 km2) in size. This land was given out as a Mexican land grant in 1845.
The grant was given by Governor Pío Pico to a man named Juan Nepomuceno Padilla. The name "El Roblar de la Miseria" means "The Oak of the Misery." This ranch stretched along the Petaluma River. It went from places like Hessel, Roblar, and Two Rock all the way south to Petaluma.
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History of Rancho Roblar
Juan Padilla's Journey
Juan Nepomuceno Padilla was born in 1824 and came to California from Mexico. In 1845, he became the alcalde (a type of mayor or judge) of Yerba Buena. This city is now known as San Francisco.
Padilla received two large land grants. In 1845, Governor Pio Pico gave him Rancho Roblar de la Miseria. Later, he also received Rancho Bolsa de Tomales in Marin County.
Changes During the Bear Flag Revolt
In June 1846, during a time of conflict called the Bear Flag Revolt, Juan Padilla was involved in events that led to his Sonoma ranch being set on fire by a group of Americans.
After this, Padilla went to Los Angeles. When he returned in 1848, he faced trouble in Sonoma. By 1849, Padilla decided to sell Rancho Bolsa de Tomales. In 1850, he sold almost all of Rancho Roblar de la Miseria. He sold it to Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo and his son-in-law, John B. Frisbee. Padilla then moved back to Los Angeles.
New Owners of the Rancho
Soon after buying it in 1850, Vallejo and Frisbee sold Rancho Roblar de la Miseria. The new owners included Daniel Wright, Erwin Hill, Edward E. Dunbar, Hardin Bigelow, Francis Salmon, John S. Ellis, and A.N. Norstrand.
Land Claims After the Mexican-American War
After the Mexican-American War, California became part of the United States. The 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo said that Mexican land grants would still be honored.
Because of a new law called the Land Act of 1851, the new owners had to file a claim for Rancho Roblar de la Miseria. They did this in 1852 with the Public Land Commission. This commission checked if the land grants were real. The grant was officially approved, or patented, to the new owners in 1858.
Disputes Over Land Sections
There was a small part of the ranch, about half a square league, that Padilla had kept when he sold the rest. In 1860, Padilla sold this remaining part to Gustave Touchard, Clement Beyreau, and Abram W. Thompson.
Later, one of the earlier buyers, Francis Salmon, went to court to get this half square league. However, the California Supreme Court decided that there was no proof Padilla had sold it to anyone else before.
